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New Version of the DROID DNA on the Way as the DLXPLUS? Is It Verizon’s M7?

Developer and HTC insider @LlabTooFeR appears to have leaked the specs to a new version of HTC’s DROID DNA on Verizon. Remember the codename of “dlx” that clung to that phone as it approached launch? That same codename has appeared in a new device but with an addition, making it the “DLXPLUS.” Are we going to see a revamped DNA already or is this Verizon’s version of the HTC M7?

The last rumor we saw for the M7 pegged it for release on every major U.S. carrier in March with a delay at Verizon, leaving many of you disappointed. If we look at this set of specs, though, it sounds identical to the M7, only with Verizon bands. If this list is correct, we have the same quad-core Snapdragon S4 AQQ8064 processor clocked at 1.7Ghz, a 4.7″ 1080p display, 13MP rear camera, 2GB RAM, 16GB internal storage, Sense 5.0, and Jelly Bean. There is even a mention of an SD card slot for expandable storage.

According to @LlabTooFeR this will support all of the same networks that the current DLX supports, which means Verizon’s LTE.

We saw HTC do something similar with the One X, last year, going with a plus version after the device had been out for a while to help give it new life. The odd thing here, is that the DNA has only been out for three or four months, so it seems early for a re-release. But hey, we won’t complain. Verizon needs to release something or it’s going to be a slow Q1.

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It looks like Android is finally waking up though…I’m a huge Android fan but this whole “lets release a million different phones” thing sucks. Samsung does 1 big, 1 regular, and 1 small per year…awesome choices. HTC is doing 1 phone, and now Google will do 1 phone…all we really need is 1 droid per year per manufacturer. The more stability it brings will finally get recognized with Apple’s 1 phone….I just wish Verizon, ATT, etc showed the HTC, Samsung, and Moto phones all at once on a commercial to identify that there are 3 droid choices to 1 apple and that droids were better in every way

Robocop

Maybe if Verizon actually marketed their phones…we have 1 small poster up in our store and EVERYBODY that sees it goes “oh, so its like that big Samsung”…the battery is terrible, the lack of storage is miserable, and the price sucks….Note2 is the wayyyyy better choice right now.

http://twitter.com/HryPop HryPop

I think HTC found a lesson in caving to operators by removing the SD slot from the DNA,. I don’t want control of my data left to VZW

ObviousNinja2

That kinda sucks for people who bought droid Dna back in november especially when someone (me) paid FULL PRICE!! WTF Verizon!

Ericinaz

I gave my wife my GS3 to get this and now it seems like I’m going back to our old rezound until this comes out. Thankfully I’m under the 14 days.

http://www.facebook.com/people/Danny-Yang/100000650290495 Danny Yang

way to screw over those people who bought the DNA.

john

Looks nice but I have a question: why do HTC continue to advertise the DNA with honeycomb wallpapers? it seems as though they can’t stay away from it. its DNA how about a dan helical swirl or some nucleotides floating around. Dang on, these honeycomb wallpapers sucks.

Alexander Munnerlyn

Why Did the Screen Size Shrink?????

Bewara2009

Oh no not again.. Another hater is thumping everyone down.. Those apple haters I bet.

LionStone

Haha, yep…someone has way too much time on their hands

Alexander Anteneh

I thought the m7 was the global version of the dna. now verizon has to make a verizon version of the m7. It never ends

LionStone

The dna ‘is’ a global device. I also don’t see why they need the M7 though, we shall see…

http://www.facebook.com/mcasteel87 Morgan Casteel

16gb blah

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1198252656 Jeff Kerstetter

If this is true, I am all over this phone. The lack of SD card was the only thing keeping me from it already. Please, please, please be true…

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1198252656 Jeff Kerstetter

Why exactly would someone take the time to vote my comment down but not even tell me why. Jesus this site is full of tools…

Chris Kendall

Three or four months? It’s barely been two; the DNA launched the week of Thanksgiving.

I’m hoping when they say “Verizon’s version” it’s simply a logo and antennas, if they differentiate between carriers beyond colors HTC is falling right back into the same trap. Even the name needs to be consistent across all carriers. HTC was close to building a brand with the One series, but they continued to compromise; EVO 4G, Incredible 4G, etc. Learn from Apple, learn from Samsung, get it right!

LionStone

It released the day before Thanksgiving, puts it at 2.5 months. I’m sure HTC gets a chunk from VZW to have it be exclusive Droid and all that, but I also think they should drop it and do the phone on all carrier thing. They’d probably make more $ in the long run.

Chris Kendall

They’d absolutely make more money. Tooling up to manufacture a million unique phones for four carriers vs. tooling up to make four million phones across those same carriers? Not to mention putting all your marketing efforts into a single brand. Then you get into accessories and support issues. It will soon be a make for break situation for HTC if it isn’t already.

I think the brand thing is the biggest concern. Verizon is a brand, Android is a brand, the name Droid is a brand, Google is a brand, HTC is a brand, etc. People who aren’t as deep into phones as DL readers have know idea who makes what. iPhone is instantly distinguishable. People know what that is. The openness of Android has made that difficult to do. Samsung’s Galaxy brand is starting to carry some weight. If HTC wants to survive they will need a consistent brand to emerge.

Daryel Villavicencio

Wish it was stock Android instead of Sense… -pass-

http://www.facebook.com/jdenman03 Jared Denman

Dont forget that 900mah battery. Lol

Enrique

Don’t trust Verizon. If the phone is more than 2 years old, they will not upgrade the OS just to make you buy a new on. It’s happen to me with HTC Thunderbolt and Samsung Galaxy Nexus.

dw

I upgraded my Thunderbolt to ICS yesterday….

NemaCystX

they wouldn’t have needed this if they didn’t remove the SD card slot in the first place…

Alex B

Im holding out for a phone with more than 16gb of internal storage for as long as i can. If the x rumors about a 128gb internal storage are true then thats my phone.

Dave

HTC bailed on the tablet market, at this rate they’ll have to get bought out by go daddy.com to maintain operations.

Pat Kerby

We want accessories! So push HTC to give us a car dock, accurate wire package like HDMI docking stations like the Note 2 got, yes my DNA has only been out for a couple Mon. Now but we don’t even have proper accessories for it……I have emailed Verizon and HTC no responses yet, so Please Droid Life go to bat for us and Help please!!!

AndrewScardino

I think the issue here is that the DNA is a “Droid” exclusive device so for HTC this is not really being shady with them releasing this phone. This is the one HTC wants to release to all just like Samsung did with the S3. They can’t not release this to Verizon just because Verizon already made them give them an exclusive early. I also do not think this is being looked at as the DNA plus by HTC like the maxx was for the Razr.

Tim242

Agreed. Regardless of other specs, a smaller screen is not a plus.

Aaron

I think that’s a little subjective. Personally I would take a 4.7″ 1080p display over a a 5″ 1080p display any day of the week.

Tim242

No reason not to prefer the 5″, if the device is the same size. But, that was not my point. I was saying that making a phone with a smaller screen and calling it the plus version would be stupid.

sjcea

I wouldnt even think of this phone or any other with the Galaxy S4 just around the corner !!!

For two HTC displays means the displays that HTC uses. HTC cameras would mean the cameras that HTC uses. SLCD2 displays are better than SAMOLED except in black levels.

And of course they are the leading android skin vendor. They are the leading android phone vendor. Those two go hand in hand. TouchWiz is still really disconnected and still looks like GB.

droidsung

To each his/her own. TW on GS3/Note 2 actually looks simpler and closer to stock ICS/JB than Sense 4 and it’s very speedy. Sense makes it look like entirely different OS.

LionStone

“…closer to stock…?” How so with about 20 different special ‘features’ which separate it from stock by a long shot. I’m so glad Sense is different from stock JB. I use my stock Nexus 7 and there are little glitches and quirks that I don’t experience on my stock dna. One being the stock browser on the dna is way smoother than the stock browser on the N7!?

r0lct

Every version of Sense that’s released looks like GB, not sure what your argument is there. At least TW (in the newest form at least) has functionality that you see rom makers copy. People stopped copying from Sense a long time ago.

Tommy Thompson

There are more pieces in the current TW that resemble stock JB android more than Sense does currently. Task Manager, app/widget drawer to name a couple.

bleeew

I see more Samsung ads in a month than an Apple ad in a year.

TheWenger

Since the DNA is a Verizon phone, I’m sure that once this comes out all software updates to the DNA will be abandoned.

Tim242

Hey, they did just release ICS for the Thunderbolt! Show some appreciation!

And at the time, 32GB microSD cards were like $90! Amazing for its day.

hkklife

Every HTC device ever released on VZW has had a microSD slot UNTIL the DNA (including the Rezound and the Inc 4G LTE like K mentioned). And reports from other sites supposedly said that HTC wanted to include the microSD slot on DNA but VZW made them omit it.
Personally, I would rather see a refreshed DNA (5″ screen and all) with 32 or 64Gb storage and a larger capacity battery. Dropping down to a 4.7″ screen makes it too much of a “me too” device like the RAZR HD, S3 etc.

http://Facebook.com/jooski JooSki

My Rezound has a 32 gig SD card in it, and is running Jelly Bean.

Dillon Brown

Its not so bad, but personally, I think instead of messing with all these pluses. Make a real revamp of the incredible and win some people back from when you had it right, with a real rework of sense. For the love of God get ride of the gingerbread green!

T4rd

It’s a nice upgrade just for the SD card slot. I thought Samsung and LG were the lone supporters of external storage now. It’s nice to see HTC come back around (if it’s true anyways).

That’s a silly idea. They want new customers. . . . they don’t care about you anymore.

Tommy Thompson

So HTC is pulling a Motorola?

Butters619

HTC has said for the past 18 months they were going to stop pulling a Moto and still haven’t.

http://twitter.com/Belatukadro Justtyn Hutcheson

And yet, Moto has stopped pulling a Moto…so, should we call it pulling an HTC now?

Butters619

I feel a Droid Life poll is in order.

Justin Winker

Agreed, however, I think it should be called a Samsung… Have you seen the number of devices they’ve been dropping lately?

Tommy Thompson

None of them have been better devices than those that were released months before. The S3 and the Note II have been their only flagship devices. Both very different, both high end.

Justin Winker

True, but I still think they are saturating the entry-level market of phones. They definitely have brand recognition with the Galaxy name, but I think they should do maybe 2-3 low-end phones a year and keep the names similar (instead of SIII Mini, Fame, Duos, etc.).

NemaCystX

HTC said today that there going to shift focus to “emerging markets” and you know what that means, low-end handsets from here on out unless they still make a flagship and release it on EVERY carrier.

I wish HTC would open their eyes, its not that people aren’t interested in their handsets, its just that they have too many and too many variants of a flagship.

They need to do what Samsung did with the Galaxy SIII and Note II, release your flagship on EVERY CARRIER without any changes to the design!!!

Ryan

It’s not HTC’s fault, its Verizon who chose not to carry the HTC One. Do you really think HTC would turn down the largest carrier in the US?

ERIC REED

Would people prefer they pull an Apple and release one phone a year?

Tommy Thompson

Would you rather have purchased the DNA, only to find out a better device was coming out just a few short months after?

michael arazan

Will Vzw delay the phone to sell more of the DNA’s they have now, like other phone’s in the past that they delayed to keep pushing Their droid brand

ERIC REED

That’s the Android market. Something better will always come along soon after and you are sitting there with your phone wishing you had that one.

Tommy Thompson

Not from the same manufacturer and not just a few short months after release.

ERIC REED

Rezound owners seeing the One X series, Razr owners seeing the Maxx, SIII owners seeing the Note 2, and Note 2 owners will now get to see the S4 and all of its goodies. Happens all the time…

Tommy Thompson

Verizon customers never received a One X equivalent. The Note II is targeted at a completely different group and has the same internals as the SIII. Razr and Razr Maxx is your only good example and just proved my point.

ERIC REED

Just check Craigslist and see the amount of people trying to trade off their SIII for a Note 2. And the One X series came out shortly after the Rezound, and I bet Verizon customers were pissed that this was not the phone they were offered just a few short months before. Or maybe that is just the few Rezound owners that I know…

http://twitter.com/spdivr1122 Stephen

whatever i like my dna

LionStone

glonass is Russian gps…the DNA has it too

http://twitter.com/spdivr1122 Stephen

thank you! i had no idea what that was. needless to say, I wont be going to Russia anytime soon.

LionStone

Yes no problem, they’ve been putting it in the smart phones lately to give even more accurate readings (its radio based and provides global coverage).

http://twitter.com/jeffaye Jeff Ayers

Wow imagine if this actually arrives on Verizon and the DNA didn’t get an instant Sense 5.0 update? This proves my point that although the DNA is a nice phone, it was pushed out too early with lower specs to hit the holiday season.

zepfloyd

what about it is lower specs? if you’re going to complain about storage or battery mah, those are preferences.

cortesjues

Other than the SD card slot and the camera im not seeing a difference in specs, im going to be mad if i dont get sense 5 though…

http://www.facebook.com/tylerjehills Tyler James Edward Hills

Why downsize?

MGDKING

So is there any word on this phone now that the one was announced?

http://www.facebook.com/Agentorange1985 Jared Wilder

Why call it “plus” when you drop one of the best features, the 5″ screen?

Joe

I’d trade .3″ of screen for an sd card slot every day of the week.

tyguy829

Razr maxx anyone? except the battery will still suck most likely (there’s a zing for you tim)!

Murphy

It’s smaller by .3 inches… she won’t even notice.

Bewara2009

That’s not what she said.

Daeshaun Griffiths

if it has a bigger battery, i’m onboard. wait is that a smaller screen….

http://www.facebook.com/CalebShwarez Caleb Loop

inb4 angry DNA owners.

jak_341

There are DNA owners?

zepfloyd

More than the number of trolls thankfully.

cortesjues

DNA owner reporting for duty, i prefer the DNA over the 4.7 inch DLXPLUS that is coming out. the 0.3 inches makes a difference for me, and since i still have my unlimited data i am not having issue with storage. I do feel bad for all the DNA users without unlimited though…

belsonc

Happy DNA owner, working just fine on my reduced data (not happy about it, but not the end of the world – I just got used to switching to wi-fi while at home), and don’t think I’ve ever been more satisfied with a phone’s performance. Next best phone I’ve had? OG Droid.

michael dobak

DNA owner. best device out right now. its the first phone that ive ever owned that i feel will be future proof for at least awhile… only complaint? the god damn imojis that you cant turn off in the sense messaging app!!

TylerChappell

yay, another DNA owner with unlimited data! Keeping my unlimited was the only way I could allow myself to be happy with the limited storage, and so far, I still comfortably have 7.6GB left.

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=716789798 Lonnie Kerchief

Happy DNA owner here. I wrote my own kernel and quadrupled the standby battery life to about 4 days. No issues at all with this phone now.

Guest

DNA owner on unlimited data. Storage nowhere near a problem still. Blown away by how good it is and battery life is pretty amazing. Also, i didn’t like the new m7. Did HTC really switch the home and task manager buttons like that? anyway, it works great and if it actually does come to verizon, verizon will have some way of ruining it.

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